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Finding joy in the everyday

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After many years of blogging I have decided to put my pen down for the time being. I have blogged on many different topics and thus far written 1,947 posts.
I am often surprised at the posts that gain the most interest — this year "Idolising poverty" received many hits, likewise "The myth of the perfect family". "True restfulness" was very popular along with "The power of our homes". Posts about fashion (modesty), ways to make our homes more comfortable, my room by room series were all winners with many hits and comments.
However, the ones that weren't popular were the posts I often felt most strongly about, "Submitting to government" was one of them and those on domestic violence (a topic I am passionate about but one that many avoid even though it is a big problem in society including among the Christian community).
The message I have tried to get across was the need for women to support and encourage each other, even if y…

Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. (Ephesians 4:29) Our words can tear people apart much more easily than we can put them back together. Speech is a wonderful gift of God but we so often misuse it.

Unwholesome speech was a problem even in the apostle Paul’s day (there really isn't anything new under the sun). He reminded the Christians at Ephesus that they should put away vulgarity, lewdness, slander, and obscene talk from their lives. These were expressions of their old lives, and it was now out of place with their new identity in Christ. Instead, their lives were to be characterized by wholesome speech. Their good or wholesome words would give grace to the hearers. The Holy Spirit would help guard their speech, convict of any filthy talk, and help them to use words to benefit others. For those who work in an office, or have a lot to do with their local church, mothers group or even th…

Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked: For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out.Proverbs 24:19-20 Have you ever found a bible verse that you feel as if you have missed or never fully comprehended? This is one such verse, I had never really thought enough about it and its time I did. These are important verses to understand. Have you ever envied someone else, just a little. I think we all have from time to time. That person who gets the promotion and you think you (or perhaps you husband) should have got it as you work so much harder than the other. Why do their unethical or immoral behaviour go unnoticed when you follow all the rules and still miss out. When we envy the wicked people around us, people who do not know Jesus as their Saviour, we fall into the common trap of looking only at the here and now and not focusing on the eternal. We also full into the trap of thinking that God has over looked th…

Depression is more than just feeling sad — it is a serious condition which makes coping with day-to-day living very hard and leaves you feeling down most of the time. Depression is REAL and it can lead to devastating results. When someone comes to you and tells you that they are feeling depressed LISTEN and don’t trivialise them. Depression should never be treated flippantly, always take what you hear seriously. Sadly not that long ago a blogger wrote a post and linked to Facebook about depression and provided very poor advice, which included “kick out self-pity quickly”. It was clear that this blogger didn’t understand depression and had never been around someone with depression. Someone wrote in the comments that they were feeling very suicidal that day. Someone else provided the emergency US suicide phone number. The blogger deleted it. I was angry as this was a call for help and the blogger treated it with distain. Here was an opportunity to reach out and make a differences, instead…

Face to face with Christ my savior, face-to-face what will it be. When with rapture I behold him, Jesus Christ who died for me. Face-to-face I shall behold him, far beyond the starry sky. Face-to-face in all His glory, I shall see Him by and by. Only faintly now I see Him, With the darkened veil between, But a blessed day is coming, When His glory shall be seen What rejoicing in His presence, when are banished grief and pain. When the crooked ways are straightened, and the dark things shall be plain. Face to face—oh, blissful moment! Face to face—to see and know; Face to face with my Redeemer, Jesus Christ who loves me so. The following by Joni Eareckson Tada (Link) Wow, what a glorious day it is going to be! Heaven is coming, friend, and something so grand, so great, so wonderful is going to happen in the world’s finale that it’s going to suffice for every one of your tears. It will atone for every one of your disappointments. Anyone who knows me knows that I love to talk about heaven because physical …

Deborah The more I learn about the women of the bible the more I discover they aren’t mentioned in the bible due the state of their homes, the number of hours they spend cleaning, whether they cook healthy meals but rather their faith in God and placing their trust in Him and doing as He requires of them. This may mean becoming a missionary or doctor to help the sick, a teacher or nurse or staying at home. Perhaps caring for the sick or helping those in the neighbourhood, reaching out to women in the church who have been abused. The tasks that God gives us to do will vary and may change as we grow older and circumstances change. Regardless, what He asks of me will be different to what He asks of you — so do not compare yourself to other women, undertake your mission the best you can with complete trust in God. Back to Deborah, well, she was a remarkable woman and Israel’s only female judge. She was married but we do not know if she had any children, we know nothing about her home life.…

Popular posts from this blog

Washing day
Wash on Monday,
Iron of Tuesday,
Mend of Wednesday,
Churn on Thursday,
Clean on Friday,
Bake on Saturday,
Rest on Sunday.
Sometimes the ordinary and mundane have a quiet beauty we haven't really taken much notice of. Today's art is all about the washing on the line and some of these paintings are quite striking.

All quotes used today are by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Enjoy.

"I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all."

"Home is the nicest word there is"

"The true way to live is to enjoy every moment as it passes, and surely it is in the everyday things around us that the beauty of life lies"
And what happens after the washing is dry . . . the ironing!

One of the most popular topics among women Christian bloggers is the issue of whether women and girls should only wear skirts and dresses or is it ok to wear slacks/jeans. Some say Christian women should only wear skirts/dresses, others say it isn't a sin issue therefore it doesn't matter as long as the outfit remains modest. Others say skirts should be to the ground, others are happy at knee length. When you look across the blogs the responses are a mixed bag and it must be confusing to those women trying to decide which way to turn. So what do I think? This is my own personal convictions on the topic and I am not telling anyone else what to wear. I grew up wearing skirts/dresses almost exclusively. All the women in my family - young and old - wore skirts and dresses. I simply wasn't allow to wear anything different. I accepted this quite happierly as a child but as I got older (into my teens) it began to niggle me, partly because I began to stand out which wasn't s…

Art Friday: Susan Wheeler
Illustrator
Todays art is all about cute little mice and bunnies. I think they are adorable and I hope you do to. My favourite is the top one - I just wish I could join them for a cup of tea and scones!

Some families are well off, other families struggle financially, some have periods of poverty, others have burst of wealth. We are all different when it comes to how much money we bring in each week, how much money is in the bank or how big or small our debts are. We are all different, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. However I have noticed a growing trend among some Christian families to share with everyone how poor they are, how much they are struggling, how old the washing machine is or all the things they do without. In fact some bloggers activity encourage women to give up their jobs and return home and live in poverty as this is seen as the ultimate Christian sacrifice (interestingly I have seen this done by women who are so much more financially better off which even worse). Some families do exceptionally well on a very low income and others do very badly on a high income. However, what concerns me is the boastfulness of those who have chosen to live in poverty as if those who…

Who remembers free school milk?
I can.
And yuck . . . warm, creamy milk in glass bottles that tasted horrible.
Why were the bottles always left in the sun to get warm, especially in summer? They could sit for quite sometime until recess, some probably went slighly off!
And if you forgot to shake the bottle you got a mouth full of clumpy cream!
The programme started at the beginning of the 20th century with all children in kindergarten, infant and primary schools receiving free milk to improve their nutrition and general health. Between 1951 and 1973 the Commonwealth Schools’ Free Milk Scheme provided one third of a pint of whole milk per day to primary school children throughout Australia. The scheme ceased om 1973 but reintroduced in 1994.
Providing the milk had cost $72,000 in 1951, whereas it had grown in cost to just over $10 million in 1969. By 1970 the government was starting to wonder if the programme was producing any benefit, except turning children off milk. This document …